The Michigan Air National Guard’s 127th Wing out of Selfridge ANGB conducted its first-ever refueling mission April 12, marking a new chapter in the unit’s history since transitioning from C-130 transports to KC-135 tankers as part of BRAC 2005. The Detroit News reported April 12 that a KC-135 from the wing refueled several F-16s from the Michigan ANG during a training mission over the southeast part of the state. The flight took place just minutes after a change-of-command ceremony to mark the change of mission from airlift to refueling. The wing traded its eight C-130s for eight KC-135s. The eight tankers came from Air Force Reserve Command’s 927th ARW that was assigned to the base. As part of BRAC, the airplanes stayed and fell under the Air Guard, and the Reserve unit moved to MacDill, AFB. Fla.
A provision in the fiscal 2025 defense policy bill will require the Defense Department to include the military occupational specialty of service members who die by suicide in its annual report on suicide deaths, though it remains to be seen how much data the department will actually disclose.